Top 15

Here are my top 15 rides of 2005 (because I couldn't pick just ten):

15. Easter escape. An epic ride through the ranges to Ravensbourne National Park.

14. Salvation. Saving the memories from a failed attempt at an imperial double century.

13. Another Stunner The clouds playing games in Tallebudgera Valley.

12. Taming the lions. An epic ride on the Lions tourist road.

11. Oh what a night! The elation of discovering a glow worm colony, but how did I miss it for this long?

10. A real getaway. An exploration of the Sunshine Coast hinterland.

9. Mt Jerusalem. The day I finally strung together the climbs of Cudgera Creek Road and Mt Jerusalem -- something I will repeat often in future.

8. The king of inclement weather. What on Earth could propel a short ride to work into the top ten? 20 inches of rain!

7. Up -- the long overdue return to Queen Mary Falls.

6. Summer Rain An imperial century through the mountains should always be ridden in the rain.

5. All night century and companion Bike-Qld post. Just imagine an imperial century at night that includes flooded creek crossings, dirt roads, punishing climbs and stunning rainforest. Check out the companion post and tell me what are the odds?

4. Worth Framing. This was a day that just continually stimulated the senses, and ended in a beautiful place that I wasn't even aware of at the start of the day.

3. Keep telling me what I can't do. Someone said I couldn't ride across the Richmond Range between Bonalbo and Kyogle. Someone was wrong.

2. Springbrook after the flood. This probably would have been in number one, except that a 20km walk was such a big part of the day. Mountains, waterfalls, wildflowers, it was all there.

1. The Garden of Eden. The title of this ride says it all, the day I discovered the Garden of Eden (the real one).

What truly astounded me was the number of rides I had to cull from the list in order to get it down to 15. Springbrook alone could have had three entries, and none of the Repentence rides through Northern NSW made the list. To think that I'd been whining over at bikejournal about not meeting certain goals. The scary part is that next year promises to be even better, but more on that later.